A Friend In Me
by Banshee Wolf
Summary: In a moment everything can change. Merlin and Arthur meet a sorceress that is set on getting revenge against Merlin and Arthur gets a lot more than he's ever asked for, but learns a lot about his magical companion. - reveal and acceptance fic!
1. The Day Everything Changed

**Author's Notes:**

Hey guys! So, this is my first Merlin Fan fic. I've got the first three chapters completed (over 10k words altogether so far), and the rest of the fic pretty well planned out. So I figured I'm confident enough to go ahead and start posting this up. This takes place somewhere around the final season, probably towards the beginning (to be honest, it's been a little while since I watched them so I don't remember exactly).

Sorry guys, no real Merthur. But there will be plenty of bromance and even some fluff.

I am only going to say this one time, and it applies to this chapter and every chapter here after: I do not own Merlin or the characters (except the antagonist), the general plot was loosely inspired by a story I read by Mischel called Hungry For Magic, I believe I have them favorited so if you haven't read their stuff you definitely should.

Please review if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.

Anyways, without furthur nonsense - Chapter One! Enjoy!

Merlin lay on the patch of grass in the small clearing that they had selected to make their camp in that night. Their tiny fire was only a foot or two to his left, with Arthur snoring blissfully on the other side. It was a quiet night, and a dark one. The full moon was tomorrow night, a fact that Merlin always kept track of, but the canopy of leaves above him was so thick that there might as well have been no moon at all...it was the height of spring after all. Only a small patch of sky was visible from where he lay, and the stars that he could see certainly made up for the lack of visible moon.

Suddenly a flash of light from his peripherals caught his attention and he whipped his head to the left. There, just on the other side of his King, was a tiny light. It was no larger than the light of a candle. Merlin rose onto his elbow to get a better look, and as he did the light disappeared only to reappear a few yards further into the forest.

Merlin gave a huff. "Well, this is lovely."

He recognized the thing for what it was, a Will-O'-Wisp. He knew well that they often appeared to lead lost travelers - sometimes to salvation and sometimes to their doom...you never knew what you were gonna get until you got there.

The light flickered, flashing twice - clearly beckoning for him to follow. Merlin sighed, he really didn't want to leave Arthur alone. But the light flashed again and Merlin knew he had to follow. Someone, or something, had a message for him. At least, he hoped it was just a message.

He slowly stood up, careful not to wake his sleeping friend, and moved slowly into the woods. The light continued to lead him deeper and deeper into the forest, further and further away from his King, and he didn't like it at all. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the wisp came to a stop in the center of a small clearing before going out completely.

Merlin could just make out the outline of a figure on the other side of the clearing. The figure reeked of magic so Merlin had no qualms at all about lifting his hand up in front of him. "Leoth!"

A small orb of light appeared in his hands, and he was now able to make out the lady standing before him. She had on a long dark dress, and a cloak that was just as dark. Her hair was dark grey, showing her age to be not too much older than Gaius.

He narrowed his eyes at her, she clearly did not have good intentions. "Who are you?"

The witch smirked, "Who am I? Who am I? I am the mother of the girl you disintegrated with lightning!"

Merlin's eyes widened, "Nimueh??" Oh, this definitely wasn't good.

She mocked him, "Nimueh?? - As if you don't remember her name! Do you forget the names of all the people you've murdered?"

Merlin shook his head, "No!" He called. "I never wanted to kill her. She was a threat to my friends!"

"Wrong!" The witch screamed. Her arms reached to the sky and the wind picked up, small branches and leaves whipped around and Merlin found himself blocking his face with his hands. "You, Emrys, are the one that chose to take her deal and then not accept the outcome! You took her life in anger rather than let your friend die by your own choices!"

"It was supposed to me me!" Merlin screamed at her, "I was supposed to die! Not Gaius! Not Nimueh!"

"And yet you lived!" The wind picked up even stronger, almost knocking Merlin to the ground, he crouched down to try to buffer a least a little. "But not for long! You will take your rightful place in the dirt soon enough, but not before you lose everything and everyone that you've ever held dear to you. "

The sorceress smirked as she turned to dust, blowing into the wind around them. You will rue the day you killed my Nimueh.

Her last warning rang in his ears as the wind died down. He looked around slowly before he rose again.

"Arthur." She'd threatened to take everything he cared for, he needed to get back to Arthur. He turned back the way he had come and bolted. He ran, and ran, and didn't stop. Branches snapped as he ran through, some of them scratching his face. But he didn't care, he needed to reach Arthur.

Finally, in the distance, he saw the light of their campfire. This spurred him on and as he got closer, he saw a very familiar black figure standing on the other side of the campfire. He was still running, and maybe even close enough for Arthur to hear. "No! Arthur! Wake up! Arthur!"

Merlin was thankful when the years of battles and training paid off and Arthur was up and scanning his surroundings in just a few seconds, and then stood frozen before the eyes of the witch.

"Arthur!" Merlin screamed as he charged into the campsite. He saw the witch lift her hand and point it at Arthur. He saw her eyes begin to slow as she began to speak the ancient language which Merlin recognized immediately.

"No!" He yelled again as he charged at her, barreling into her only to be met with the cold, hard ground. He looked up and around quickly, but the sorceress was gone. The only sound was her laughter echoing through the trees before slowly fading into nothing.

Arthur scanned his surroundings quickly before going to his servant. "Merlin! Are you alright? Who was that?"

He lowered a hand to help lift Merlin off the ground. Merlin sighed as he dusted himself off and lied quickly, "I'm not sure, Sire." He couldn't tell him the truth. "But she may be back."

Arthur nodded. "Well, it's still too dark to start riding again. We will have to take shifts keeping watch."

Merlin fully agreed, "You get some sleep, Sire. I'll keep first watch and wake you in.a couple of hours."

Arthur shook his head, "Oh, no. You have clearly been awake for a while already, where were you anyways? Came running in from somewhere?"

Merlin blinked, "Oh, no, I had just gone off to relieve myself and was on my way back when I saw her there standing over you."

Arthur crossed his arms, "Uh-huh."

Merlin shrugged, his king clearly didn't believe him...but he wasn't about to tell him the truth. "Honestly, Sire, I'm fine to stay up for now." He smirked, "You know you need your beauty sleep."

Arthur glared at him, but only shook his head as he moved back to his mat to lay down again. Merlin, on the other hand, moved to sit against a nearby tree. He hadn't been lying to Arthur when he said he was good to stay awake. He didn't see himself sleeping anymore anyways - not after that encounter.

And sure enough, several hours later had the king waking of his own volition.

"Merlin!" He called sleepily as he slowly sat up, "It's already daylight, why didn't you wake me?"

Merlin smirked, "I told you, you needed your beauty sleep."

"Shut up, Merlin. You should have woken me, you need sleep too. - Not beauty sleep, I don't think any amount could help you...but you need rest too." Arthur was standing up now, and rolling his mat up. "Come on, we need to get in the road. We shouldn't stay in one place for too long. She may try to come back."

"She'll definitely try to come back." It was meant to be under his breath, but Arthur's head snapped up.

"What was that Merlin?"

"Oh, well, she certainly seemed determined...I mean, she wouldn't have made herself known like that if she didn't intend on doing something." He kinda stumbled through his words.

Arthur merely nodded and headed to his horse. "All the more reason for us to get moving. We need to get to the village anyway."

The next few hours had them moving through the forest as fast as their horses could reasonably travel through such thickly grown trees. They stopped a few times for breaks so that the horses could rest, but never for longer than thirty minutes.

Finally, just after the sun hit its highest point in the sky, they broke through a treeline where they could see a small village up ahead. They pulled their horses to a halt to survey the area, and Merlin grinned, "There's the village, Arthur! We made it!"

"Indeed, well let's get going so we can find out about this wolf problem of theirs, and be headed back."

They spurred their horses on again, and within minutes were pulling them short outside of the small village inn. They dismounted easily and tied the horses to a hitching post and took a look around.

"Arthur," Merlin called hesitantly. "Do you notice anything strange?"

Arthur looked around, trying to pinpoint what his idiot servant could possibly be on about. "Not really, everything looks fine to me."

"Exactly." Said his servant, "Everything looks completely normal. Everyone is going about their daily chores, children off playing in the fields...I thought they were supposed to be under a wolf watch?"

Arthur shrugged, thinking it over. "That's a fair point," he mulled it over in his head. "Well, let's go inside, I'm sure someone there will have some answers for us."

The two headed into the building. Being the middle of the day in a small village, it wasn't particularly busy. A few people sat at tables eating their lunch, a musician sat by a stone fireplace playing softly on a small harp. All in all it was a nice little tavern.

Arthur moved over the the bar where a man stood behind it, casually wiping down cups before putting them in their places - apparently someone had just washed them.

"Hello, sir." Arthur began, "Could you tell me who I need to talk to about your wolf problem?"

The man stared at them for a moment, "Wolves, Sire? Ain't been no wolves 'round 'ere."

Arthur narrowed his eyes, "No wolves? But this village sent a messenger to Camelot just a day ago. We rode for two days to get here to help you."

The man shrugged, "Not sure who'd 'ave come. Ain't got no wolves 'here, as I said, an' no one's left neither."

Arthur blinked, very clearly confused.

Merlin, on the other hand, new exactly what was happening. "Arthur, we need to leave."

"What? Merlin, we've only just got here. We can at least stay long enough for a bite to eat."

"No, Sire, we can't. We need to go. Now." He gently tugged at Arthur's sleeve.

Arthur pulled his arm away, and Merlin groaned, "PLEASE, Sire."

Arthur hesitated, his servant certainly seemed desperate for them to get out of the town. "Fine. We'll go. But you'd better cook us up something fantastic for dinner since I'm missing out on this lovely man's food."

The man behind the bar smiled, revealing rotten teeth. Merlin rolled his eyes, "Yes, I'm sure we will really regret missing out. Now, come on."

And so Arthur nodded to the man, and they turned toward the door. They were only a few steps away when the first scream split the air. The second scream was only a few seconds behind it. Arthur and Merlin glanced at each other before picking up their pace, bursting through the tavern doors and stepping out into the daylight.

It didn't take them long to find the reason for the screams. Five Gargoyles were flying around, swooping down to terrorize the townsfolk. Lifting them up off the ground only to drop them down a few yards off. It was almost as if they were looking for someone specific. And neither Merlin or Arthur had to work hard to guess who it was.

"Come on, Merlin." Arthur took out his sword and started walking towards the nearest threat.

"Arthur! They are after us, we need to leave, NOW!"

"I can't leave these people to fend for themselves."

"But they are after us! If we leave, they will follow and leave the village alone."

That stopped Arthur in his tracks, "You know, Merlin, sometimes I think you may have half a brain hidden under the idiocy."

"Gee, Sire, thanks so much for the compliment." He said as the two men headed for their horses. Merlin thought briefly about how tired they must be...he'd have to make sure they got lots of good treats when they got back to Camelot.

And then they were running again, they made sure to ride straight through the middle of town in order to draw as many of the Gargoyles as they could. It worked flawlessly, and as they left the village all five of the flying beasts were on their tails.

"Great, we've got their attention, now what?" Merlin asked.

"Now," Arthur pulled out his sword, "We don't get taken."

"Fantastic." Merlin sighed. He was utterly defenseless at the moment. Sure, he had his magic, but he could hardly use his magic with Arthur right there, it was far too dangerous. There was no way he'd be able to do anything without Arthur seeing.

But he was quickly beginning to believe that he was going to be left with little choice. The gargoyles were swooping down one after another, one might get hit with Arthur's sword, but as soon as one was knocked off another was on the attack. There was no way that Arthur could block all of them. Then the five of them gathered together for one joint attack. Merlin knew that if he didn't act Arthur would be history.

And so he prepared himself as the five began their dive. Arthur still held Excalibur in one hand, the horse's reins in the other. He prepared to swing as they got closer - but he never had a chance.

"Awendap eft wansaeliga neat!" Arthur heard his servant yelling and turned his head to see Merlin's arms outstretched towards the Gargoyles, his eyes glow gold and a blast of energy send the gargoyles flying off to the side.

Arthur pulled his horse to a halt and stared at Merlin openly. "You...you…"

Merlin sighed followed his king's lead, coming to a stop. "Yes, Sire, can we please get out of here?? You can put me in chains later."

Arthur nodded, and started to spur his horse forward, but suddenly stopped. "Merlin!"

Merlin followed his gaze, just in time to be slammed into by a new Gargoyle that had come out of nowhere.

Merlin barely had time to register Arthur jumping off his horse and coming towards him before everything faded to black.

When Merlin came to, it was to a splitting headache.

"Arthur…" he mumbled before he was even completely aware of his surroundings.

"I'm here." The voice came from just a few feet away, Merlin glanced over to see his king sitting there with his arms wrapped around his knees, with an angry scowl on his face.

Now that he knew the king was safe, he looked around slightly. They were in the middle of what looked like a courtyard of a castle, although the castle was very run down, and the courtyard was almost overgrown with grass. This had to be the home of the sorceress, or at least where she was currently staying. She would no doubt make an appearance soon. They needed to get out of here.

"Arthur…" he started as he moved to sit up.

"Don't. Just don't" His friend interrupted. "I'm not interested in talking to you right now."

"What?" Merlin wondered, but then it hit him. He'd done magic. Right in front of Arthur. Arthur had very clearly seen it...and yet they had still been caught. He'd revealed his magic and it hadn't even gotten them anywhere. "Oh…"

"Yes." Arthur said, mockingly. "Oh."

"Arthur, I can-"

"I said don't!" the king yelled. "I don't want to hear it!"

"And you won't have to." This was a new voice. Well, new to Arthur. Merlin was already well familiar with it.

The two men looked up to see the witch approaching quickly, as if she was floating through the air. Merlin scrambled to his feet and moved to stand in front of Arthur. "I won't let you hurt him."

Arthur watched in awe as his servant rose to defend him. The tone the boy had used had been incredibly threatening, Arthur was grateful Merlin had never used that particular tone with him. It quite surprised him, actually. He never would have suspected Merlin to have that level of animosity. The witch, however, did not seem impressed. She merely laughed as she continued forward.

"You do not scare me, young one. I have been a high priestess for far longer than you have been alive. There is no skill that you have that I have not mastered many years ago."

Arthur watched as Merlin merely clinched his fists at his side before shouting once more, "I WON'T let you hurt him!"

The witch only laughed again, "Well, you don't have to worry about that. It's not him I want to hurt."

Arthur's eyes widened as he understood the implication. "Merlin…"

Now Arthur was rising, he couldn't let the witch hurt his friend...if he really was his friend. He had too many questions now - he needed answers and if she hurt him then he'd never get them.

"Arthur," His servant spoke from in front of him. "Don't."

"You weak human king, you think you can stop me?"

The witch was moving forward again, coming towards Merlin. She started chanting. Then everything happened very quickly, but at the same time very slowly.

Merlin moved to defend himself, but suddenly found himself unable to move, unable to even think. He was completely immobilized. The witch pulled out a knife, it was very scary looking - it looked as if it was made solid gold, with various precious gems embedded into the hilt. The blade was curvy, with sharp edges on both sides. Arthur screamed as he charged forward, only to be easily cast off to the side with a wave of the sorceress' hand. The witch was still chanting.

Arthur moaned as he rolled onto his side to see what was happening, and then froze as his eyes took in what he was seeing.

The witch had reached Merlin now, and was holding the knife up. Her chanting was almost more of a yell now, and the wind had picked up around them. What's more - Merlin had started to glow. GLOW. And then she brought the knife down, slamming it down into his servant's chest. "NNOOOO!!!"

He watched as a golden light ripped from his servants body and seemed to hang in the world around them before it gathered into a small orb in the witch's hand. "MERLIN!"

The witch laughed as his servant slumped to the ground in a heap, obviously completely unconscious - if not dead. There was no way he could survive that stab wound.

He was vaguely aware of the witch coming towards him, still chanting, but he couldn't take his eyes off of his fallen friend. "Merlin…."

The witch was on him now, and he retaliated too late, she slammed the knife into his own chest, and he screamed more in fear than actual pain - he was somewhat aware that he didn't feel any pain. No, it felt like something was being stuffed into him, he felt energy surging into him from somewhere - he noted that the golden orb the witch had held was gone now, but he couldn't focus on anything else as the energy built and built inside him until he couldn't take it any longer.

He threw his arms out with a monstrous scream, and watched as the witch was thrown back, only for a bolt of lightning to come from the sky and disintegrate her. He couldn't believe his eyes.

Then the energy came back to him, and between that and the shock of all that had happened, he collapsed to the ground as darkness took him.


	2. Coming to Terms

**Author's Notes:**

So, I had a lot of fun writing this one, and even more fun reading over it to edit it. So, I hope you guys like it! Thank you so much for the reviews and favorites - I plan to update every Saturday as those are the days I actually have time to write, and I typically get about two chapters written for every one that I post. That way I keep ahead of my self and don't get behind.

Anyways, here is Chapter Two! Let me know what you guys think!

Arthur woke slowly, trying to put together everything that had happened. As the memories finally assaulted him, his eyes snapped open, only to snap shut again as the sunlight blinded him. But with a groan he forced them open again as he rolled over and worked to sit up.

Merlin. He had to find Merlin - after everything that had happened, everything that he had learned, none of it mattered if Merlin wasn't alive.

He looked around, his eyes settling on his servant who still lay motionless on the ground. "Merlin!"

He tried to stand up, but quickly learned he was far too unstable for that as he fell forward onto the ground again. And so he crawled, as quickly as he was able. "Merlin!"

When he finally reached the boy he grabbed his shoulders. "Merlin!"

There no reaction, no motion at all.

"No, No, No!" Arthur felt his heart beginning to hammer in his chest, and he put his fingers to his neck, checking for a pulse. It took him a minute to calm himself down enough to differentiate Merlin's from his own, but he finally found it. It was there. The king breathed a sigh of relief.

He laid the boy back down, and started looking him over. First of all, he checked his chest, the wound there had to be nasty, and he worried that there was no way he would be able to get his friend medical help...but one look quickly put his fears to rest. There was no wound. Not even a scratch. Although there was a very nasty scar that looked like a burn mark. Arthur was perplexed, to say the least, but his thoughts quickly vanished as he heard his servant moan.

"Merlin!" The relief in the king's voice was almost tangible.

"Arthur…" Merlin was slowly waking up. His eyes slowly opened, and slowly came to focus on his king. "Arthur...what…"

"I don't know, Merlin." And that was a fact, the king had absolutely no idea what had happened. He remembered watching Merlin get stabbed, and crumbling to the ground. But after that? Nothing.

Suddenly a gasp drew his attention back to his servant. "What? What is it?"

Merlin's eyes had gone wide, and even were starting to fill with tears.

"Merlin?" The king was concerned now, "What's happening? What's wrong?"

The boy was hyperventilating now, gasping for breath. "It's, it's gone."

Arthur stared at him, confused. "What is? What's gone?"

"My...my...my mag…"

Arthur watched as Merlin couldn't even get the words out. He got the idea though. Merlin's magic was gone. He watched as his friend sat there, sobs wracking his body. His magic must be very important for him to be having this reaction. "Merlin…"

And then Arthur was aware of something he hadn't been before. Something that made him freeze where he sat. There was an energy inside him, sitting just beneath the surface that he could physically feel. "Merlin...I...I think I have it."

Merlin's breathing hitched, and he slowly moved to look at his king. And now he was truly terrified. Not only did Arthur know about his magic. He also had complete control of it. This was bad. This was very very bad.

And now that the dust had settled, now that he knew Merlin was going to live, all his feelings on the matter were rushing back into him. And he was getting angry.

"Merlin." His tone was low, dangerous, and Merlin felt the need to scoot away from him - but he didn't dare move. "You have magic."

Merlin gulped. "D - Did, Sire. DID, have magic…"

"But you had it. This whole time!?"

"Y - Yes, Si-"

"So you've been lying to me all these years!"

"Yes, Arthur, but -"

"Don't 'but' me, Merlin! You've betrayed me!"

"No! Sire, I wouldn't! I've alw -"

"No!" Arthur interrupted him yet again, "No! I don't want to hear it! Not right now."

Merlin sat silent for a moment, and watched as the king pulled his knees up and once more wrapped his arms around them. He looked rather like a child pouting and Merlin couldn't help but chuckle….which had not been wise.

"Oh? Is something funny Merlin?"

"Oh, uhm, no Sire."

"Are you certain? Because I'm quite sure I heard you chuckle - I'd like to know what was funny enough in this situation to warrant a chuckle."

"N - Nothing, Sire. Nothing."

Arthur growled in frustration and stood up, Merlin moved to follow suit. "Leave me alone, Merlin. I don't want to even look at you right now."

He moved to walk away, but Merlin couldn't let him leave, not like this. He had so much to explain, "Arthur," he said as he was standing up, reaching for the king's sleeve to stop him, "Please, you need to underst -"

"I said, NO!" The king rounded on him, slapping at him with the very arm Merlin had been reaching for - but magic enhanced his attack and he watched as Merlin went flying backwards and crashed into a nearby wall. Arthur watched as his servant fell to the ground and didn't get back up.

"Merlin!" The king ran the short distance and knelt down beside Merlin. The boy groaned as Arthur moved to help him sit up, "Merlin, I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened, I don't know how I did that. I didn't mean to -"

"It's fine." Merlin interrupted him with a weak wave of his hand. "It happens. Don't worry about it."

Arthur shook his head in bewilderment, "You mean, this happens a lot?"

Merlin shrugged, then rubbed his shoulder when it seemed to pain him. "It certainly used to. I finally learned to control it. You'll need to learn too."

Arthur growled, "I don't want to control it! I don't even want it!"

Merlin sighed, "Trust me, I don't want you to have it either. But since you do, there's nothing for it. You have to control it or else you could hurt someone."

"Well, I'm sure you'd know." Arthur nearly spat out the words.

Merlin stared at him in disbelief. "What?"

"You'd know about hurting people. You're a sorcerer."

Merlin almost couldn't even come up with a response. Almost. "Oh, so now I guess you think I'm evil? Out to murder you in your sleep?"

Arthur shrugged, "You have magic. Magic is evil."

Merlin smirked. "So, does that make you evil now?"

Arthur glared at him, "I didn't exactly CHOOSE this Merlin. That makes it different."

"I DIDN'T CHOOSE IT EITHER!" Merlin shouted louder than he meant to.

Arthur actually shrunk back a bit, "Of course you did! Magic is something you choose."

"No! Not for me! I was BORN with it!"

Arthur stared at him and sighed, but not for long. "Well then you truly must be evil. You've truly fooled me all this time."

Merlin groaned and threw up his arms in desperation. "Fine then! I'm evil! So evil that I saved your life from those STUPID Gargoyles yesterday - even though that clearly was for nothing. I must have been evil when I saved you from Lady Helena's knife, and I must have been evil again after I drank from the poisoned goblet to save your stupid life. And aallll the times after that! I must have been terribly evil to bother saving your Royal Arse."

Arthur watched as Merlin stopped to take a breath before continuing, "If I'm so evil then maybe it's a good thing you've got my magic - now YOU can be evil and save my life for once."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Merlin blinked at the king's once again childlike behavior. "Yeah, fine, whatever."

They sat in silence for several minutes before the king sighed. "Just tell me one thing, Merlin. Why haven't you ever told me?"

Merlin almost laughed in his face, "Oh, gee, I don't know. Maybe it was because I knew you'd react like this? Being called evil is something I've always dreamed of - thank you so much for helping to make my dream a reality."

"Oh, don't be such a girl, Merlin."

Merlin shook his head, "You know what? Fine. Enjoy your evil magic powers."

He stood up and started walking away, only getting five feet when Arthur yelled out to him, "Wait a minute - where are you going!?"

Merlin turned and threw his hands up. "You clearly don't need my help, and even if you did 'I'm evil' so you clearly don't want it. So, if you don't mind, I'm going to leave you to it."

With that he turned and started walking again. "Merlin! You can't leave me like this!"

Arthur was standing up now too and running after him, "Merlin! I need your help!"

At that Merlin stopped, and slowly turned to face his king. "You what now?"

Arthur sighed, "I'm sorry, ok?"

Merlin held a hand up to his ear - "What's that now? I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the evil thoughts in my head."

"I'm SORRY!" The king yelled, "That's just what I've always been taught! I can hardly be expected to change my entire life's opinion in one day! I need your help."

Merlin crossed his arms and lifted an eyebrow in his best Gaius impression. "Why should I help you? You've done nothing but judge me and accuse me of being evil when all I've ever done was help and protect you."

Arthur sighed and nodded. "I believe you."

Merlin blinked, "You what?"

"I said I believe you. I've known you long enough, if you wanted to kill me I'd be dead by now."

Merlin slowly lowered his arms and looked down at the ground. "Well, that's certainly true."

"I know you won't hurt me."

Merlin looked up at him, "What?"

Arthur sighed, "Seriously, have you gone deaf Merlin? Are you going to make me repeat everything I say from now on? I said I know you won't hurt me."

Merlin nodded, "And what exactly makes you think that?"

Arthur shrugged. "Like I said, you've had plenty of opportunity. Whatever your evil plan is, it isn't to do with me."

Merlin could only sigh again. Well, that was a start...

They stood in silence for a few seconds before Arthur sighed, "So...will you help me? I don't know what to do...I don't want this."

"Well, I can help you manage it, not hurt anyone else, but in the end we need to figure out how to get it back to me."

Arthur nodded, "I'm all for that. But how do we do that?"

"I don't know…" he stopped as he thought for a second. "But, I know someone who might."

"That's great!" Arthur smiled, "Who?"

"You're not gonna like it."

Merlin was smirking. Arthur hated it when Merlin smirked. "Why? Who is it?"

"You really don't wanna know." He was still smirking. "Come on, we need to find a clearing."

"A clearing? Why do we need - Merlin?" His servant had turned to continue walking, but abruptly stopped, a hand going up to his head as he swayed slight. The king was there in a second, "Merlin, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm fine, I - I just got dizzy for a minute...let's go." He started walking again but swayed again and nearly fell had Arthur not grabbed hold of him.

"Come on, Merlin, what's going on?"

"My magic is gone." He took a deep breath, "It's a big piece of my daily energy - without it, I feel...empty. I'm exhausted."

"I told you you needed sleep too." Arthur smirked, referring to the morning before.

"Shut up." Merlin glared. He started to move forward again but only stumbled again. "You...you may have to help me."

"Yeah, yeah." Arthur was already there, wrapping Merlin's arm around him. "So why were you fine a few minutes ago?"

Merlin shrugged, "I was angry. Adrenaline? Who knows."

Arthur nodded, he supposed that made sense in a way. "Are you going to stay like this?"

Again, Merlin shrugged. "I don't know, Arthur. It's not like this is a regular occurance. I might be fine after I get some rest, or it may get worse. I have no idea...but hopefully he will know."

"Who?" Arthur asked again.

Merlin sighed. "I might as well tell you...we are going to call the dragon."

"A Dragon!?"

Merlin shook his head. "Not A dragon, THE dragon. The only one left alive."

"You mean the one that was imprisoned under Camelot?"

"The very same."

"But I killed him!"

"No - you wounded him."

"Then why did he leave so easily?"

"I sent him away."

"You."

"Yes, me."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "What, now I suppose you're a Dragonlord as well."

He'd said it sarcastically, but Merlin didn't answer - "Come on, seriously?"

Merlin nodded and Arthur shook his head. "I thought Balinor was the last Dragonlord."

Merlin gave a slow nod. "He was...until he died. Then his power was passed to his son."

Arthur stopped walking and stared at his comrade as the implications came together. "Balinor...Balinor was your father?"

Merlin could say nothing, only confirmed with another nod. Arthur shook his head, unable to believe it, "I had no idea."

"Yeah," Merlin sighed, "That was kind of the point."

"I always wondered why you took it so hard when he died, I thought you were just worried for Camelot."

Again, Merlin said nothing.

"Well, come on." Arthur said, ready to get this over with. "Let's go call this dragon."

Several minutes later, after several stumbles from Merlin and Arthur growing tired of holding him up, they came out of the courtyard and Merlin gave a grateful sigh. "This area is large enough. It will work."

Merlin pulled away from Arthur and stood upright. To say Arthur was hesitant was an understatement, "So, what are you going to do exactly."

Merlin shrugged, "Exactly what I said, call the dragon. If it works."

"If?"

"Well, being a Dragonlord is in part magic, but it's also not at all related to magic and is just a part of me. So, I don't know if I still have the ability. If not, then you'll have to do it."

"ME!??"

Merlin smirked, "Hopefully it won't come to that."

Merlin took a step forward, putting just a foot or two between him and Arthur. Arthur was beginning to ask what he was doing, but didn't get the opportunity. Because suddenly Merlin was screaming into the sky, his voice echoing around the entire clearing, bouncing off the castle walls - words that Arthur could never dream to understand, and an energy raced out from Merlin, pushing the words out into the world. Having magic, Arthur could sense that now. It was...he didn't have words to describe it.

Then Merlin stopped, and Arthur almost wanted to clap, "Well, that was certainly - Merlin?"

Merlin was swaying again, and Arthur was barely able to reach out before his friend collapsed in his arms, calling the dragon had clearly used up the last of his energy. "Of course," he complained as he gently lowered Merlin to the ground. "You call a bloody dragon and then leave me to deal with it. How long am I going to have to wait anyway?"

Of course Merlin didn't answer, and Arthur sighed as he sat down beside him.

He didn't have to wait long. The sound of giant wings flapping in the breeze caught his attention after just a few minutes, and he scrambled to his feet as the dragon hurriedly landed. "PENDRAGON!" He roared, "What have you done to Merlin!"

"What have I? - I haven't done anything!" Arthur yelled back.

"Then why is he unconscious? I could sense his difficulties even through his call."

Arthur sighed, "His magic was stolen from him, it was all he could do to call you."

"His magic was stolen? That's impossible."

"Apparently not. It was given to me."

"Given to -..." the dragon stopped, and seemed to eye him for a moment, Arthur felt the dragon's energy reaching into his own. "So, you do have the boy's magic."

"Yes, I do, we were wondering if -"

But he was interrupted by laughter. The dragon was laughing!

"How can you laugh at a time like this!?"

The dragon took a moment to gather himself, "I'm sorry," he said, still barely able to contain his humor. "But the irony of this, you must find it amusing? A Pendragon, has magic. The very thing that you and all of those before you have sought so hard to rid the world of, you have it within you."

Arthur narrowed his eyes. "Believe me, I'm well aware."

The dragon began laughing again.

"Please!" Arthur called, "Help us!"

This made the dragon stop and roar once more. "I do not take orders from you, Pendragon! You can not issue demands!"

"But I can." The voice was small, barely a whisper that came up from the ground. Arthur and the dragon both looked down at the boy, who still looked completely exhausted. "Please," he said, "You must know something we can do."

The dragon lowered himself down, getting comfortable. "You must tell me what happened, and I will do my best to help you find a solution."

And so the two men got comfortable, Arthur helped Merlin sit up before sitting down himself, and launched into their story. Merlin started with the witch visiting him him the woods - Arthur was very angry that Merlin hadn't told him, but they quickly moved along. Merlin told the dragon about the Gargoyle attack, and the witch's approach. Arthur had to finish because Merlin didn't remember anything after she started chanting. Arthur told the dragon how she had stabbed them both with a golden knife.

It was a long story, and took a long time to tell, but when they had finished the dragon sighed. "I am afraid there is nothing that I can do. The only thing that would help was to repeat the spell, but in reverse."

"So we have to get stabbed again? Lovely." Arthur sighed.

The dragon nodded. "In the same way, at the same time, and using the same spell."

"That means someone with magic will have to do it." Merlin said, thinking aloud. "How would we even find that spell?"

"What do you mean the same time?" Arthur asked.

The dragon sighed, clearly frustrated with Arthur's lack of understanding. "Yesterday was the full moon. That's the only reason the spell was powerful enough to work. The reversal must also be done on the full moon, otherwise you may only get part of your magic back, or simply die in the process."

"Great." Arthur said. "So we are stuck like this for another month. Longer if we can't find the spell."

Merlin sighed. "A month without my magic. Will I even last that long? I feel exhausted, like I haven't slept in months."

The dragon nodded. "You will live. While magic is only a fraction of your life force, it IS majority of which keeps you going. I have no doubt that without it you will be more lethargic, with far less energy at your disposal - you must be careful not to over exert yourself. Such things could have disastrous consequences."

Merlin smirked, "Hear that, Arthur? I can't over exert myself."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Yes, Merlin, I heard."

"On the other hand, young Pendragon, you will likely find yourself with far more energy and strength than usual, seeing as you have most of Merlin's."

"Hear that, Merlin? I'm even more awesome than usual."

Now it was Merlin's turn to roll his eyes. "Yes, Arthur. I heard. How do we find the spell that she used?"

The dragon gave a large shrug, "Such a spell would require an immense amount of research and experimentation, the evidence of which would be difficult to hide."

Arthur tilted his head, the most confused that Merlin had ever seen him. He clearly wasn't used to the dragon's cryptic answers.

"So," Merlin said aloud as he thought, "Maybe she'd have her notes in a study or something in her home."

Arthur's eyes widened and glanced at Merlin, the dragon merely nodded. "That is a possibility."

Merlin smiled, then stood up excitedly - regretting it immediately when the blood rush caused him to sway slightly, Arthur reached an arm up to help steady him, Merlin nodded in thanks. "I'm fine, sorry….but she brought us here, this is probably where she was experimenting. Let's go check it out."

Arthur stood up, but wasn't so sure about bounding into a seemingly abandoned castle. "Are you sure about this, Merlin? Maybe you should stay here with the dragon."

"Kilgharrah." The dragon interrupted.

"What?" Arthur stared up at the giant beast.

"I have a name - Kilgharrah."

"Oh...my apologies...Merlin, maybe you should stay here with...Kilgharrah."

"No way," Merlin shook his head decidedly. "I'm the only one of us that knows what to look for. I'll be fine."


	3. The Search Begins

**Author's Note:**

So, I ended up not updating last weekend - it was the holidays and I was working a lot and I just didn't have the energy to work on much of anything. So, I apologize for the delay.

This is the shortest of my chapters so far, and is mostly a transitional chapter to get us through to the next without just dragging on and on...but there is definitely good information that comes out.

Review if you have any comments or suggestions! Enjoy!

~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter Three

Half an hour later after much deliberation, Arthur's bewilderment watching Kilgharrah fly away, and another slow trek across the courtyard, the pair found themselves in the grand entrance to the old castle. Merlin's arm was still slung around Arthur's shoulder as they looked around, taking in their surroundings before just rushing in.

The castle, while far smaller than Camelot's, had clearly been quite impressive in it's day. There was a huge staircase going upstairs, parts of the stairs were chipped and the stone railings were crumbled in places. There were several large rooms off to either side of the entrance, and it could only be assumed that a kitchen and dining area lay beyond.

Arthur was not looking forward to searching this place. "So, Mr 'Knows-What-He's-Looking-For'. Where do we start?"

Merlin glanced around, "We'll need to split up. The two of us trying to search this place together will take forever."

Arthur shook his head, "There's no way I'm leaving you alone in here. Not in your state."

Merlin smirked, "What, are you suddenly worried about me? Don't worry, if I get into trouble I'll be sure to scream."

"Merlin, seriously, I'm not ok with this."

"Well, you don't have to be." Merlin sighed and lifted himself off of his comrade. "If we stick together it will take us days to search this place. Do you really want to be stuck here for days?"

Arthur shrugged, "I don't see why not. There's shelter, probably a little food if she truly was here long term. We aren't expected back at Camelot for at least a few more days. You can rest up a bit before we make the journey back - IF we can even find horses. And even aside from that, we can't reverse this until the next Full Moon anyway so it really isn't like we are in a rush."

Merlin found himself smirking again, "You really don't want to leave me alone."

Arthur groaned, "Of course I don't! Do I really have to say it!? I can't have you running around wearing yourself out and getting into all sorts of dangers without any means of protecting yourself."

Merlin was still smirking. "You never thought I had any means of protecting myself before either, but that never bothered you."

Arthur sighed. "Yeah, well. I know differently now. I'm not leaving you here alone until we are confident there are no hidden dangers."

Merlin nodded, the smirk still plastered on his face. "Alright, Sire. You win."

"Thank you." Arthur gloated, "Now, what do you say we look around down here before trudging up the stairs, yeah?"

Merlin looked at the stairs, not at all liking the idea of having to walk up them. "Yeah, that sounds fine."

And so the two wondered around the main floor. All of the rooms were in various states of disarray. It was very clear that no one had been in most of them in many many years, and Merlin was beginning to doubt that the witch had been living here. Maybe she just brought them here to throw them off her trail.

It was when they reached the kitchen that they began to have a little hope - for there were several signs of recent activity. There was a cauldron hanging over a fireplace, and fresh vegetables and herbs, jars on shelves containing any number of...oddities...and even dishes that had clearly been used within the past couple of days.

"Well," Arthur started with no small amount of satisfaction. "There has definitely been SOMEONE here recently. Hopefully our Sorceress."

Merlin nodded, "With all the herbs strewn about, creepy jars on those shelves, and the cauldron? Most likely."

"Well, I think that covers most of the main floor. Now what?" Arthur asked.

"Now," Merlin said as he inched towards a stool. "I need a break. Just a short one, I promise."

Arthur nodded, "That's fine, here, have a carrot."

He picked up a carrot that had been laying on the table and tossed it to him, Merlin barely managed to catch it and Arthur sighed. "Sorry."

Merlin shrugged as he took a bite, "No worries. Hey, why don't you see if you can find an entrance to a lower level? If not we'll head upstairs in a few minutes."

Arthur gave him a quick glare, obviously not wanting to leave him alone. Merlin almost laughed, "Arthur, I'm fine. We've already searched through the entire ground floor with no issues. You're the one venturing into a potentially dangerous and creepy basement."

Arthur hesitated only a moment but finally nodded. "Alright, fine, but I'll be back in ten minutes."

Arthur gave him one last glance before turning and disappearing through a small hallway, leaving Merlin alone.

Merlin sighed and leaned over the counter, resting all of his upper body weight on one arm and held the other out in front of him, his hand open and level with his face. "Leoth."

Nothing. Nothing happened. No little orb of light. No surge of energy. No flash of his eyes. He sighed and slumped down the rest of the way to the counter. It was true then. His magic was truly gone.

In hindsight, he couldn't believe Arthur was still talking to him. True, Arthur had been mad initially, furious even...but the anger seemed to have subsided for the most part. Maybe the king was just repressing it until they got this situation sorted. Merlin gave a slight nod, yes, that was probably what it was. As much as Merlin wanted his magic back, he was terrified to think what would happen once he did.

Downstairs, Arthur was thinking along similar lines as he explored what seemed to be a maze of dungeons. He had found a torch, luckily, and had managed to light it. It was true, he was mostly just repressing his anger at the moment. The fact that Merlin had magic seemed like a small problem in comparison to the fact that ARTHUR now had magic. And besides - Merlin was like a shell. Just looking at him you could see how much the loss of his magic was affecting him. Arthur was far too worried about him to stay angry for too long, he cared about his servant too much for that.

Arthur was deep in thought when the smell hit him - he knew the smell instantly and really didn't want to go any further...but he needed to confirm. He covered his nose with his arm as he continued along the hall he was currently walking down.

After a few more seconds, it emptied into a room. The little light from his torch was enough to verify the king's fears. Bodies littered the room, in varying states of decay. Most of the older ones had very clear wounds on their chest, suspiciously like knife wounds. Some of the newer ones had no wounds, but Arthur had a feeling he knew exactly what had caused it. With a heavy sigh he crept backwards out of the room, and headed back towards Merlin.

Just a few minutes later had him walking back into the kitchen. "I found something, nothing helpful, but -"

The king paused as Merlin jumped up from his slumped position, quickly wiping his face with his hands. Arthur sighed, "Merlin…"

Merlin shook his head, pleading with Arthur not to prod. "What did you find?"

Arthur hesitated, torn between allowing his servant time to grieve his obvious loss, tormenting him on it as he would have done in the past, or just ignoring it altogether and getting on with things….he opted for the latter. "You aren't going to like it."

Merlin lifted an eyebrow and nodded, urging the king to continue. So he did, "In the furthest point of the dungeon, is a room. Merlin, it was terrible, it was completely full of bodies. My guess would be the failed experiments."

He watched as a sadness came over Merlin, and he realized that the people below had all been people like him, people with magic. They had all died in the witch's attempt to perfect the spell she had used on Merlin. She had clearly been planning this for a long, long time, and those people had paid for it with their lives.

"There's one thing I don't understand." He asked aloud.

Merlin smirked, "Only one thing?"

Arthur ignored the jab and continued - "If you're so powerful, why did she give your magic to me? Why not take it for herself and become even more powerful?"

Merlin sighed, "To me it's obvious. She wanted me to live with having lost someone I care for. She wanted you to learn of my magic in the worst way possible. She wanted you to hate me, and she wanted you to kill me. Or, at the very least, banish me from Camelot so that I could live out my days alone and without magic. She wanted revenge."

"For what?"

Merlin hesitated, only for a moment, and took a deep breath before he continued. "For Nimueh."

The look of confusion that crossed Arthur's face was clear. "Nimueh?"

Merlin nodded. "I killed her."

Arthur was silent as he considered this. Merlin felt the need to explain further. "When you were bitten by the questing beast, I -"

"But Gaius healed me from that."

Merlin smirked, "Not exactly. There is a place called the Isle of the Blessed. I travelled there to bargain for your life."

Arthur's eyes widened, and he moved to sit at the stool opposite Merlin. "You? Why? We had only known each other a few months."

Merlin nodded, "You were meant to be a king Arthur, and much more. You were not destined to die so young. I couldn't allow it."

"So, what did you bargain?"

"You're not going to like it."

Arthur rolled his eyes, "I'm so tired of that phrase. Merlin. WHAT did you bargain?"

Merlin looked down at the wooden counter, and traced the grain in the wood with his finger. "In order to save a life, a life must be given. The world must maintain balance. I had to save your life."

Arthur's gaze had turned into a glare now. "Whose life did you bargain Merlin? Whose!?"

"My own."

Arthur's fist came down on the table and Merlin jumped, "Damnit Merlin, why would you do that!?"

Merlin shrunk into himself, "I couldn't let you die! You're life is worth ten of mine."

Arthur groaned, "Just because you're a servant? Merlin you have magic. That must be worth something."

Merlin shook his head, "Not if you die. My whole purpose for having and using magic has been to serve and protect you. If you die, then I might as well not have it anymore."

Arthur was shocked, to say the least. He opened his mouth a few times to comment but it was several seconds before he found the words, "You...You truly believe that?"

Merlin nodded instantly, "I do."

They sat in silence for a few seconds, before Merlin decided to continue. "Anyways. I gladly accepted the price to save your life, believing the life given would be my own. But the next day my mother arrived in Camelot. She was dying."

Merlin paused here for comment from Arthur, but Arthur only nodded for him to continue. "I couldn't let her die either, not for me. So I prepared to return to the Isle of the Blessed. I even came to say goodbye to you, although I'm not sure if you would remember."

"I remember." The king said instantly. "You said that I needed to learn to listen, and that you'd be happy to serve me until you died."

Merlin nodded. "Right."

"Do you still feel that way?"

Merlin hesitated - "about which part?"

Arthur shrugged, "Any of it, I suppose."

Merlin gave a small smile, "Well, you have gotten a bit better at listening. You still are a stubborn prat, but you at least listen when other people give you advice. And yes, I would still be happy to serve you until I die...if you still let me after all of this."

Merlin said the last bit in hopes of gaining a semblance of an idea to what his king was thinking regarding everything, but that hope quickly faded when the king pointedly ignored the statement. "Ok, so, continue."

Merlin sighed, but did as requested. "I went up to tell Gaius goodbye, only to find he'd already left. He was determined to sacrifice himself to keep me from having to...and I couldn't very well allow that either. So I returned to the Isle only to find that I was too late, Nimueh had already taken Gaius' life as payment."

"But, Gaius -" Arthur started

"Let me finish," Merlin interrupted him, and to his surprise the kind only nodded. "I attacked Nimueh. She retaliated and hit me with a ball of fire and -"

"Is that how you got that scar?" The king interrupted again.

"...What?"

"The scar, on your chest - I saw it when I was checking for the knife wound. Is that how you got it?"

Merlin slowly nodded, "Y-Yes...anyway...I managed to kill her with a bolt of lightning. Thereby restoring the balance of life and death and Gaius was allowed to live."

"Ok.." Arthur nodded, "But, what does that have to do with our sorceress?"

"She claims she was Nimueh's mother." Merlin looked down at the counter again.

Arthur leaned heavily on his stool. "All of that was so long ago, she's been planning this for quite some time."

Merlin gave a sigh, "And with the body count to prove it."

Arthur nodded slowly, before standing abruptly, unwilling to allow Merlin anymore time to dwell on the matter. "Come, let's head upstairs."

Merlin nodded and stood slowly, testing his balance. When he found he could stand on his own he waved off Arthur's help, and headed out of the kitchen and back towards the grand staircase.

Arthur smiled, glad that his friend was able to walk on his own again, even if he was a little slower than usual. He stayed nearby though incase Merlin's strength gave out - but it proved unnecessary as they approached the staircase. He frowned when he heard Merlin sigh, "I...may need your help getting up this."

Arthur nodded, "Couldn't I just magic you up there?"

Merlin actually snorted, "Well, I mean it's possible. But you haven't even had it a day yet, I think we should probably start you off with something simpler than flying me up a staircase."

Arthur huffed, but nodded. "Fine then, let's go."

It only took them a couple minutes to reach the top of the staircase, and when they did Merlin pushed off of Arthur to stand on his own. "That wasn't so bad. Maybe I'm getting used to feeling like this."

He meant it as a positive thing, but automatically he felt himself deflate. He didn't want to have to get used to this. Arthur sighed and clasped his friend's shoulder.

"Come on, Merlin." He said as he headed to the first room. "Let's find out how to fix this. Her research has to be up here somewhere."

"Not necessarily." Merlin said as he slowly followed, "Being a sorceress she would probably want to be in one of the most difficult places to reach, in case someone came looking for her. It could be up in one of the towers."

Arthur nodded, "Well, sure, but she was also old. I can't imagine her voluntarily going all the way up into the towers when she could choose any room on a lower level."

Merlin supposed that was true. He knew Gaius was getting tired of traversing the stairs up into the tower, doing his best to take everything he needed in one go so as to avoid multiple trips up and down every day.

Merlin was brought from his thoughts when he nearly ran into Arthur, who had stopped in the large open doorway. "Arthur? What is it?"

Merlin moved around to get a view, and froze as well. Arthur's suspicions were confirmed, this had to have been the main living area of the witch. There were shelves and shelves of books, some thrown about on the floor, and papers scattered everywhere. There was a bed in the corner that was old and looked as if it would break if you poked it too hard.

"Well," he said as he took a step into the room. "We'd better get started. This is going to take a while."


	4. A Hard Decision

**Author's Note:** Well, I'm sorry it's been so long. Don't worry, I haven't given up on it or forgotten, and still have every intention of finishing this...it just might take a bit longer than I thought. I'll try to be as regular as I can, but life is kinda hectic right now. (When isn't it, right?)

The story is coming along now, and starting to form a bit clearer in my head. I'm excited to keep it going.

Anyways, enough talk right? Here's your update:

~*~*~*~*~*~ **Chapter Four**

Arthur groaned in frustration. They had been searching through the books for hours already, it was beginning to get dark. Merlin had settled in at a very old and run down desk which seemed to have been a sort of base of operations. The first thing he'd found had been a huge book of magic, and since then he'd been scouring it for information.

The witch's knowledge of magic, particularly dark magic, had been immense. It was going to take him a while to really read through it all and find the spell he was looking for.

"I'm sorry, Arthur." Merlin offered, "I'm reading as fast as I can but it's going to take time. If I still had my magic I could flip through it far more quickly but since I don't."

"Well could I do it?" Arthur asked as he strode over.

"Well, sure, probably. But you don't know what to look for. A lot of it is in the old language, that's part of why it's taking so long. I'm not exactly fluent - I know enough to figure it out as I go..."

Arthur sighed. "I feel completely useless."

Merlin chuckled, "Well, now you know how I feel most of the time."

"But you have magic, you're anything but useless."

Merlin rolled his eyes, "I DON'T have magic. You do. But you can't use it can you? Therefore, it's useless."

Arthur was silent while he pondered that. "You couldn't use it because you weren't allowed to."

Merlin nodded with a shrug. "Magic is pretty much pointless if you can't use it how you're meant to. Every time I had to use it I was terrified you'd find out. All it would take was for you to glance over and check on me at just the right second and you'd have known everything. And I'd have been on a pyre set to burn the next day."

"Oh, come on." Arthur argued, "No you wouldn't."

"Can you honestly promise me that Arthur?"

The king hesitated. And he sighed as he realized that no - he couldn't. If he'd found out before his father had died, he surely would have had a much harsher reaction. Not to mention the decision would have been out of his hands anyway - his father would surely have had him burned without a second thought... As it was, Arthur's own reaction hadn't been great, but it had been tempered by the fact that HE himself now possessed Merlin's magic, and he could feel for himself that it was not, in fact, evil. Very powerful, yes, but not evil.

Which proved on its own that magic as a whole was not evil - but was often used by evil people.

And Merlin wasn't evil. Merlin didn't deserve to die.

"I can't promise what would have happened in the past. I don't know. But I can promise you this - you will not be burned for having your magic, Merlin. I don't know yet exactly what will happen...but I will not let you die. You have my word."

Merlin was...surprised. To say the least. "I thought you were angry."

"I was." Arthur nodded. "I still am, a bit. But, not because you have magic."

Merlin lifted an eyebrow in question and Arthur shrugged, "I guess I'm more upset that you didn't trust me with it...although I understand completely. I probably wouldn't have trusted me with it either."

Merlin managed to smile, "So - you don't think I'm evil?"

Arthur laughed, "A sappy girl like you? Merlin. You don't even like it when I kill something for us to eat when we are out on quests. You couldn't possibly be evil."

"And my magic?" Merlin pressed.

Arthur shrugged, "I've had it inside me for an entire day now, and I haven't once felt the urge to smite anyone down - well, except for that witch...but I thought you were dead."

Merlin smirked, "You killed the witch because you thought I was dead?"

Arthur squirmed for a moment, "Just get back to reading will you? My point was - I can FEEL your magic Merlin, there is no evil."

Merlin nodded, and looked back down at the book of magic. "Arthur."

"I said get back to reading! Don't worry about what I said."

"No - I think I found it." Merlin was turning to him now, his eyes skimming the page.

"What?" Arthur closed the distance between them to read over his shoulder.

"This is definitely it! Well, a part of it." He said as he continued reading. "This particular one didn't work out in the end, but we're on the right track."

"Great job, Merlin!" Arthur proclaimed as he shook his servant's shoulder.

Merlin glanced up at him at the sudden praise. "There's still a lot to go through. But at least it's a start."

Arthur nodded, "It's more than we had a few minutes ago - I'm going to look around up here once more, make sure there are no other creepy crawlies before we settle down for the night."

"What?" Merlin looked up, "Here?"

Arthur shrugged, "We might as well. Plenty of shelter and food down in the kitchen. There's no point in going anywhere until we find the reversal spell."

"Arthur - finding the spell could take days. Sure, we found a bread crumb but it's sure to be a very long trail. Not to mention how long it will take for me to actually learn it and -"

He trailed off. Arthur lifted an eyebrow, "Yes, Merlin?"

Merlin sighed and shook his head. "I just...momentarily forgot that I don't actually have magic. We'll have to find someone else to do it which will take even longer."

"Nonsense," the kind said. "You can teach it to me."

Merlin rolled his eyes, "You know, for someone so intensely against magic you sure are determined to use it while you've got it."

Arthur shrugged, "Might as well see what it's all about right? The best way not to fear something - and yes, Merlin, I do still fear magic...I'm not afraid to admit that - is to learn to understand it."

Merlin nodded. "Ok then. But this spell is going to be far too powerful for you - and involve cutting yourself with a knife. If it isn't done properly, you could end up like those bodies downstairs. I really think we should find someone else."

Arthur nodded. "I suppose you're right."

Merlin glanced past him at the doorway. "It's starting to get dark."

Arthur nodded, "Yes, Merlin. I'm aware."

"You're going to need some light."

Arthur nodded a little more dramatically, "Yes, Merlin. I know how to light a torch."

"Or," Merlin started, "You could use magic."

Arthur hesitated a second, and Merlin chuckled as he shrugged, "Or you can use the torch. I just thought you might be interested to start with a simpler spell."

Arthur slowly nodded. "Alright...show me what to do."

Merlin smiled and stood up. "Alright. Now. Hold your hand out, palm out, yes, that's the way." he smiled as Arthur did as he was told, "and say 'Leoth.'"

When Arthur spoke, it was barely a whisper, as if he was afraid another lightning bolt was going to come out of his hand. "Leoth."

Merlin smirked as nothing happened. "Come on Arthur, you've got to mean it. WANT it to work."

"Leoth." A little more forcefully that time, but still, nothing happened.

"Arthur. You are the king of Camelot! MAKE it work for you!"

He watched as Arthur closed his eyes before opening them once more. And then the king mustered all of the authority his birthright allowed him and practically shouted, "Leoth!"

Merlin watched with no small amount of envy as the king's eyes flashed gold with the use of Merlin's magic, and an flash of light exploded from his palm before coming to settle in a smaller orb.

Arthur stared at the little ball of light sitting in his palm. "That's…"

Merlin smiled, his envy disappearing as he watched his friend come to terms with the magic he'd just used. "Beautiful? Exciting? Helpful?"

Arthur shook his head as he lifted up his palm, his eyes following the orb as he willed it to float a little higher. "I was going to say familiar...have you used this before?"

Merlin pursed his lips in confusion - "Around you? Certainly not. Would have been kind of an instant give away, yeah?"

Arthur nodded. "It's just...I'm sure I've seen this before. But I can't quite place when at the moment. You're sure you haven't used it to aide me?"

Merlin shrugged, "I'm hardly the only warlock you've come into contact with. There's no telling - it's a fairly simple and common spell."

"I guess." Arthur looked at the orb once more before he turned to head out of the room they had been in for far too long "I'm going to look around, you stay here and keep reading. If you need anything just shout."

Merlin nodded, "Have fun."

Arthur watched as Merlin went back to the desk to start pouring through the book of magic again, before turning and stepping out of the hallway.

Merlin had been right, and Arthur was certainly glad that his warlock friend had taught him the light spell. The castle was dark. If it hadn't been for the light of the orb, Arthur didn't think he'd be able to see ten feet in front of him.

He moved around carefully, checking each room for any signs of life - human or otherwise. His search through the second floor was fairly uneventful, save for a few rats here and there, until he came to the last room on the hall.

He entered the room a bit more quickly than he probably should have. All of the other rooms had been empty so he was beginning to let his guard down. This room was proving to be pretty empty as well, although slightly odd as there was a huge hole in the wall. He walked over to see that the wind was picking up outside, and it was even beginning to rain a little. He was glad that he had talked Merlin into staying in the castle...camping in the rain was not enjoyable in the least. Speaking of Merlin, Arthur decided he should probably get back before his friend did something stupid like come after him. So, he turned to exit.

And was greeted by a Gargoyle of stone. An involuntary scream left him before he could stop it and he drew his sword...only to realize that this one was in fact solid stone. He breathed a sigh of relief and was in the process of putting away his sword, when he heard footsteps approaching.

They were getting closer, and Arthur sighed as he realized that he'd know those girly steps anywhere.

"Arthur!" His servant appeared in the doorway, quickly scanning the room for danger. "Are you alright?"

Arthur rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Merlin. I think I know how to take care of myself."

Merlin was panting, the short sprint having clearly worn him out and Arthur felt himself growing concerned. "Merlin, what are you doing here? You know shouldn't be running about like a maniac."

"Like a maniac?" Merlin argued between breaths. "I heard you scream, I thought something was wrong."

Arthur straightened up, "I don't scream, Merlin. I'm not a girl."

Merlin smirked, "Well, you certainly sounded like one."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Anyway," he continued - turning his back to Merlin as he went to the large hole in the wall. "I think I found where she was keeping the Gargoyles. There's one left behind, but this huge hole seems to me an excellent way for them to get in and out whenever she wanted to -"

A sudden thudding sound behind him made him cut his words short and turn to see Merlin face down on the floor. "Merlin!"

The king moved across the room to kneel beside his fallen manservant, who was groaning and apparently just coming back to consciousness. "Merlin...are you alright?"

Merlin moved his arm to rub his forehead as he moved to sit up. "Yeah - what happened?"

Arthur sighed, "I imagine you overexerted yourself. Did you run here from the other room?"

Merlin paused, considering, then gave a slow nod. "Well I heard you scream. I had to make sure you were ok."

"I didn't -" he sighed, cutting himself short. "Well, maybe don't do that in the future. Come on, let's get back to the bedroom. Still lots of magic books to sort through."

Merlin nodded and excepted the hand that the king offered and sighed as he was pulled to his feet. "Arthur. How long do you think I'll be like this? Weak and pathetic?"

Arthur smiled, "You've always been weak and pathetic to me."

Merlin didn't say anything, and Arthur realized his joke may not have come across the way he'd meant it. He cleared his throat, "Well, I'm sure you'll be fine once you get accustomed to it."

"I don't want to get accustomed to it…" Arthur heard his servant mumble.

The king patted his friend on the back as they made their way back. "We'll work it out."

The next morning, Merlin was still sitting at the desk, having searched through the various books of magic all night long. He leaned forward, and rubbed the tiredness from his eyes. He had found the spell, only about an hour ago, and now was considering everything that would have to happen for them to reverse it.

A slight groan from the other side of the room made Merlin look over to see Arthur finally stirring. Unable to be much help as far as the search went, he had fallen asleep leaning against the wall hours ago. If Merlin knew his king, and he did, the man would be up and gripping for food in about half an hour.

Merlin rolled his eyes and shook his head with a slight smile on his face as he rose to his feet and headed out of the room and down the stairs. Time to put that kitchen to use.

After digging around for a few minutes, he managed to come up with a few pieces of bread and some apples. He carefully arranged the food on a plate and started back up the stairs.

As suspected, Arthur was again sitting upright when he returned.

"There you are," the king started. "I was worried I was going to have to track you down."

Merlin smiled, "Nonsense. I just went down to get you some breakfast."

Arthur lifted an eyebrow, eyeing his servant carefully. "How are you feeling?"

Merlin shrugged as he handed Arthur the plate he'd prepared. "A little better. Just tired."

The king nodded as he took a bite of the bread. "Did you get any sleep?"

Merlin shook his head. "Nah, I didn't have time. But - I did find the spell."

"You did?"

"Yes." Merlin moved to sit at the desk, and looked over the book of spells.

The king watched wearily as Merlin skimmed the page for what he could only guess was the hundredth time. He knew his servant well enough to know something was up. "And?"

Merlin hesitated, but finally turned to face Arthur. "We are going to have to split up."

Arthur nearly dropped the plate. "What?"

Merlin nodded. "I think it's best. There are a few things that need to be taken care of before the next full moon. I'm perfectly capable of doing them...but it will take time and you're needed in Camelot."

Now Arthur did put his plate down. "So you think I'm going to let you go traipsing off into the woods on your own? And defenseless?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Well we haven't really got much choice have we?"

Arthur stood up now, his food forgotten. "And what about me? What about this magic? I can't control it! If I get found out -"

"You're the king." Merlin interrupted. "You'll be fine."

Arthur snorted. "Even the king can be burned at the stake if he's found using magic. It's the law Merlin!"

"Then change the law!" Merlin shouted a bit louder than he'd meant to.

Arthur stared at him now, fully conscious of his jaw dropping but completely unable to really do much about it. "Change the law - Merlin you can't possibly -"

"You have to." Merlin stated now. "I won't be able to come back if you don't."

"Merlin…" Arthur was still staring. "You have to come back."

Merlin shook his head. "No. You know now. I can't ask you to keep my secret. You're the king. You can't make an exception for me - once we get this worked out...if I return to Camelot you have to follow the law."

"Merlin. You've kept it secret this long - why can't you just keep doing that? We can continue like this never happened."

Merlin smirked. "Let me know how this next month goes for you and see if you still think it will be that easy."

"About that - I can't control this magic, how am I supposed to keep it hidden if you aren't there to help me?"

"Talk to Gaius. Tell him what's happened. He'll help you."

Arthur sighed. "Alright, so say we do split up and I let you go off by yourself, and supposing you don't get murdered by bandits or eaten by wolves. What are you going to be doing?"

Merlin smirked, "Your confidence in my abilities is astonishing. Really."

"Seriously, Merlin. Answer the question."

"Well," Merlin started. "First, we need to find someone to perform the spell. I obviously can't do it. You aren't practiced enough to be able to do it. Gaius isn't strong enough. I think we need to get a druid to help us."

"Aren't they in hiding? How are you planning to find them?"

Merlin smiled, "I have my sources."

Arthur stood there staring at him in confusion, before it dawned on him. "Ah, the dragon, right."

"Kilgharrah is a good contact to have." Merlin had been standing all this time, and was starting to grow tired, so he leaned against the wall as he continued. "He always knows where the Druids are, and if he doesn't it won't take him long to find them."

"You'll be staying with the dragon then?"

Merlin blinked, "What?"

"The dragon. You'll travel with him? He can surely protect you."

Merlin resisted the urge to laugh in his face. "Arthur. He's a dragon. Not a guard dog."

"But you're a dragon lord!"

"And?" Merlin crossed his arms. "He is a dragon, the last of his kind. A proud and noble creature. I will not reduce him to a body guard on my account."

Arthur threw up his arms in frustration, but seemed to be out of arguments. "You've been thinking about this a lot haven't you?"

Merlin nodded. "For the past hour or so. Now - if you're quite finished arguing with me - finish your breakfast. We need to find some horses before we do anything else."


End file.
